The vestibular system acts as a mechanism to maintain balance of an individual by monitoring the motion of the head and stabilizing the eyes relative to the surrounding environment. The vestibular system includes various organs disposed within the inner ear that sense movement and acceleration of the head in various directions.
A healthy vestibular system supplies the brain stem reliable information regarding spatial orientation, including information regarding the spatial orientation of the head. Normal functioning of the vestibular system can be disrupted, however, leading to transmission of inaccurate or unreliable information to the brain stem. A number of factors can contribute to such disruption, including several age-related factors. For example, an acoustic neuroma may grow on the vestibule-cochlear nerve. Contact between inner ear organs and various other bodies, including loose debris and skin (cholesteatoma) and bone growths (otosclerosis) can also disrupt the vestibular system. Moreover, many diseases and conditions can have a negative impact on the functioning of the vestibular system, including Meniere's disease, migraine associated vertigo, and various autoimmune diseases.
No matter the cause, disruptions to normal functioning of the vestibular system frequently have lifestyle-changing impact on the individual. These disruptions typically lead to spatial disorientation, which is the sensation of not knowing where one's body is in relation to one or both of the horizontal and vertical planes. Affected individuals are often forced to limit their movement and can become physically ill while disoriented.
Disruptions to normal vestibular function are common. One study indicates that as many as thirty-five percent of United States adults aged 40 years or older have experienced at least some type of vestibular dysfunction. (Agrawal, Y., et al., “Disorders of balance and vestibular function in US adults,” Arch. Intern. Med. 2009; 169 (10): 938-44.)
Not surprisingly, the art includes a number of approaches to treating disruptions to normal vestibular function. For example, several approaches for stimulating the vestibular system include moving a subject in a particular physical pattern, whether horizontally, vertically, or rotationally. These approaches typically refrain from moving the affected individual, opting instead to move an apparatus (such as a chair, stool, or platform) on which the subject rests. These approaches aim to move the head in concert with the body and avoid movement of the head and/or neck independently of the body. U.S. Pat. No. 8,702,631 to Maher for VESTIBULAR STIMULATION SYSTEMS AND METHODS describes an example that follows this treatment approach
Despite this and other examples, a need exists for improved vestibular optimizer devices, systems, and methods.